Guardians of the Galaxy (2008 team)

The Guardians of the Galaxy are a fictional spacefaring superhero team that appear in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning formed the team from existing and previously unrelated characters created by a variety of writers and artists, with an initial roster of Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Quasar, Adam Warlock, Gamora, Drax the Destroyer, and Groot.

These Guardians first appeared in "Annihilation: Conquest" #6 (April 2008). A feature film based on this team was released in 2014. A sequel, titled Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, is scheduled to be released in 2017. This Guardians team is the second to operate under the name, following the original team created by Arnold Drake and Gene Colan in 1969.

Publication history

The second volume of the title was published in May 2008, written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning and featured a new team of characters from the Annihilation: Conquest storyline.^[1][2]

Abnett and Lanning's work on the Annihilation: Conquest story laid the foundation for the new Guardians of the Galaxy book that they had been wanting to launch for some time.^[3] Editor Bill Rosemann, who had also edited Annihilation: Conquest, provided more background: "As the planning of Annihilation: Conquest came together, it occurred to us that, if things went well, there would be a group of characters left standing who would make for a very interesting and fun team." It also provided the motivation the team would need, as "on the heels of two back-to-back wars, they're out to prevent any new Annihilation-size disasters from erupting."^[4]

The title ran parallel with Nova vol. 4, which was also written by Abnett and Lanning. The two crossed over in the storylines "War of Kings"^[5][6] and "Realm of Kings".^[7][8][9] Paul Pelletier pencilled the first seven issues. Brad Walker and Wes Craig alternated pencilling tasks from #8 to #25.^[10]

The book was cancelled in April 2010 with issue 25. Some plot threads were concluded in The Thanos Imperative 1–6 and its two one-shots (May 2010 – Jan 2011).^[11]

The team appeared reassembled in Avengers Assemble #4–8 (June–October 2012).^[12]

The Guardians of the Galaxy appeared in a new series for Marvel NOW! starting with issue 0.1 written by Brian Michael Bendis and drawn by Steve McNiven. In addition to the previous Guardians, Iron Man also joined the team.^[13] Later issues of the series saw Angela,^[14] Agent Venom,^[15] and Captain Marvel join.^[16] With the success of the film adaptation, spinoff books were also created as solo titles featuring Star-Lord,^[17] Rocket Raccoon,^[18] and Groot.^[19]

Guardians of the Galaxy was relaunched as part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel initiative with Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti returning as writer and artist respectively.^[20] The series sees Peter Quill and Gamora leaving the team, and Rocket becoming the self-appointed new team's leader, also two new characters were added to the team. Kitty Pryde (taking up the mantle of Star-Lord) and the Thing.^[21] As a part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel initiative, all the cast of the movie Guardians will get their own solo series. Star-Lord will continue as a solo series written by Sam Humphries,^[22] while Rocket Raccoon and Groot will join to be a duo series written by Skottie Young.^[23] Drax and Gamora will also get their own solo series written by UFC fighter CM Punk^[24] and Nicole Perlman^[25] respectively.

Team history

In the aftermath of the Phalanx invasion of the Kree, Star-Lord^[26] decides to form a team of interstellar heroes that will be proactive in protecting the galaxy, rather than reacting to crises as they happen. To this end, he recruits Adam Warlock,^[27] Drax the Destroyer,^[28] Gamora,^[28] Phyla-Vell (the new Quasar),^[29] Rocket Raccoon,^[30] and Groot,^[30] with Mantis as support staff.^[31] On the recommendation of their ally, Nova, the group establishes a base of operations on the space station Knowhere, which possesses a teleportation system with near-universal range.^[32] An intelligent, telepathic dog named Cosmo the Spacedog is Knowhere's chief of security and works closely with the new team. After a confrontation with the Universal Church of Truth,^[1] the team meets a semi-amnesiac man who identifies himself as Vance Astro - Major Victory of the original Guardians of the Galaxy.^[33] Astro's declaration inspires the as-yet-unnamed team to adopt the "Guardians of the Galaxy" name for their own.^[34] When the team learns Star-Lord directed Mantis to telepathically coerce the heroes into joining the team, they disband.^[35]

Rocket Raccoon decides to continue Star-Lord's mission and starts a search for the missing members. His new team includes Bug, Mantis, Major Victory, and Groot, who is fully regrown.

Meanwhile, Star-Lord was banished to the Negative Zone by Ronan the Accuser for his actions during the Phalanx's attempted conquest of the Kree Empire. There, he finds himself in the middle of King Blastaar's fight to break into 42 and use its portal to invade Earth. Star-Lord allies with Jack Flag to defend the prison and contact the other Guardians for rescue. Rocket's new team successfully brings both of them back, and Flag becomes a Guardian.

Elsewhere, Drax and Phyla begin looking for Cammi, but on their search they talk to a seer who tells them about an oncoming war. Phyla is able to wake Moondragon from the dead, but loses her Quantum Bands in the process. The consequence for Phyla is that she is now the new avatar of death. They go back to Knowhere and do not follow up on the search for Cammi.

War of Kings

Warlock and Gamora return and inform the team of the War of Kings. They split into three teams, one each to the Kree and Shi'ar, and one staying on Knowhere to coordinate. The Kree team is heard by Black Bolt and the Inhumans, but their request for peace is denied. The Shi'ar team is attacked by Vulcan and the Imperial Guard, leading them to ally with the Starjammers.

Star-Lord, Mantis, Bug, Jack Flag, and Cosmo are taken to the 31st Century by that era's Guardians, who warn them of the creation of an all-destroying energy rift called The Fault at the war's conclusion. Trapped in the future, Star-Lord's team is able to get a message to Warlock in the 21st Century. Warlock is unable to stop The Fault's creation, but is able to contain it with a spell that requires a stable, unused timeline. Warlock chooses the one he previously erased,^[36] causing him to become the Magus. Star-Lord's team, with the help of Kang the Conqueror, are returned to this point in the timestream. To escape, Magus fakes the death of himself, Mantis, Cosmo, Major Victory, Martyr, and Gamora.^[37]

Martyr frees herself with the help of Maelstrom, and enables Mantis to call the other Guardians for help telepathically. When they come to the rescue, Phyla-Vell is misled by Maelstrom into freeing Thanos. Thanos kills Martyr, but is captured by the Guardians and taken back to Knowhere as a prisoner.^[38]

The Thanos Imperative

When the universe is invaded by the alternate universe known as the "Cancerverse" from the other side of the Fault, the Guardians take Thanos to the Cancerverse in an attempt to end the war early.^[39] Along the way, Drax attacks Thanos and is killed.^[40] They are ultimately successful at ending the war, but Thanos is left enraged and promising to kill everyone. Along with Nova, Star-Lord remains in the collapsing Cancerverse as the other Guardians escape.^[41]

After the death of Star-Lord, the Guardians disband. Still believing in their cause, Cosmo recruits another team under the name "Annihilators".^[42] Rocket Raccoon and Groot later reunite and decide to continue the Guardians' legacy after the duo prevent an incident on Rocket's home world, Halfworld.^[43]

The new team appears on Earth to aid the Avengers against Thanos.^[44]

Marvel NOW!

After Star-Lord's father visits him in a bar to tell him that it is forbidden for any alien species to visit Earth, Iron Man is attacked by Badoon appearing to attack Earth. The Guardians and their newest member Iron Man defeat the ship; however, London is still attacked.^[45] The Guardians defend London and finish off the horde of Badoon but learn that, for violating the "Earth-is-off-limits" rule (the Spartax Earth Directive), they are to be placed under arrest by the King of Spartax. The Guardians manage to escape with the help of Groot, who had recently regrown after being destroyed by a Badoon ship's explosion. The team includes Star-Lord, Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, and Tony Stark. In April 2013, it was announced that Image Comics' Angela (Spawn) would join the Marvel Universe as the result of a legal battle between Neil Gaiman and Todd McFarlane. After appearing in Age of Ultron, she joined the Guardians in November. Captain Marvel and Agent Venom are set to join the team.^[46]

During the Secret Wars storyline, the Guardians of the Galaxy take part in the incursion between Earth-616 and Earth-1610. During the incursion, Rocket Raccoon and Groot are killed by the Children of Tomorrow, Star-Lord is teleported away trying to come up with a back-up plan, and Gamora and Drax the Destroyer are surrounded and confused by the corpses of their comrades.^[47]

Reception

The series debuted to mostly positive reviews.^{[48][49][50][51][52][53]} The May 2008 sales estimate for the first issue was 39,854 copies, making it the 61st top-selling comic title that month.^[54] The first and second issues sold out;^[55] they have been reprinted in a collected edition.^[56]

Collected editions

Volume 2

• Hardcover

• Softcover

Volume 3

Guardians Team-Up

Secret Wars

Volume 4

Guardians of Infinity

Oversized hardcovers

Other versions

1602

During the Secret Wars storyline in the domain of King James' England (which is based on the Marvel 1602 reality), the Guardians of the Galaxy have a counterpart here named the Gardiner's Men. They are a troupe of performers consisting of Madam Gomorrah, Peadar O'Cuill, Arthur Dubhghlas, Goodman Root, and Aroughcun the Raccoon. Angela befriended them where she helped to fight off the beasts that were attacking them.^[57]

In other media

Television

• The Guardians of the Galaxy are mentioned by the Dark Surfer in the episode "When Strikes the Surfer" of the animated series The Super Hero Squad Show.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in the episode "Michael Korvac" of the animated series The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. In this adaptation, the team consists of Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Quasar, and Adam Warlock. They arrived on Earth where they pursued Korvac. They battle the Avengers, who think Korvac is a pursued victim, and later team up with them to defeat Korvac.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in the Ultimate Spider-Man episode "Guardians of the Galaxy". The team consists of Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Gamora, Groot, and Drax the Destroyer. The Guardians of the Galaxy were responsible for training Nova. Rocket Raccoon calls upon Nova and Spider-Man to help the Guardians of the Galaxy fight the Chitauri led by Korvac. In "The Return of the Guardians of the Galaxy", the Guardians land on Earth to repair their ship at the time when Titus was leading the Chitauri into claiming Nova's helmet. After the Guardians of the Galaxy's ship is repaired, they helped Nova and Spider-Man fight Titus and the Chitauri. After Titus was defeated even when S.H.I.E.L.D. arrives, the Guardians of the Galaxy leaves with Titus in their custody while the remaining Chitauri escapes.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in the Avengers Assemble episode "Guardians and Space Knights". The team consists of Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Gamora, Groot, and Drax the Destroyer. Their first design and voice actors were based on their appearance in Ultimate Spider-Man (which was based more on the comics) while their later appearance changed their design and voice actors to reflect their upcoming animated series (which was based more on the film). The Avengers had to deal with the Guardians of the Galaxy at the time when Galactus was led to the D'Bari's planet by Iron Man (who was under the power of the Power Cosmic) to consume it instead of the Earth, causing the D'Bari to evacuate. There was a mentioning by the Guardians of the Galaxy that most inhabited planets have a "Galactus Contingency Plan" where Star-Lord is surprised that Earth doesn't have one. Even though the Avengers and the Guardians had a hard time, they then realized that Iron Man led Galactus to the D'Bari's planet because it had become unstable where the explosion knocked out Galactus. After the D'Bari found another planet to settle on, Captain America tells Star-Lord that he hopes that their paths cross again. In the episode "Widow's Run", Star-Lord and Rocket Raccoon try to get the Avengers to let the Infinity Gems be in their custody only to be turned down by Tony Stark. When the Guardians of the Galaxy arrive to claim the Infinity Gems from Black Widow and Thor, Star-Lord and Rocket Raccoon stated that their trip to Asgard served as a beacon where they listed the Spartax, the Sakaarans, and the Celestials as examples of those who want the Infinity Gems. The Avengers end up fighting the Guardians even when Black Widow had a vision that the Guardians of the Galaxy would fall under the Infinity Gems' influence. Using special teleportation disks, Falcon teleports the Guardians back to their ship. While their appearance prior to Widow's Run was based more on their comic counterparts, they were redesigned to look more like their film versions and also changed the voice actors to the ones voicing them in their upcoming animated series.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in the Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. episode "It's a Wonderful Smash". The team consists of Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Gamora, Groot, and Drax the Destroyer. In their self-titled episode, the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. run into the Guardians of the Galaxy when they come across a plot by Super-Skrull to create gamma-powered Skrulls on an unnamed planet. In the episode "Planet Monster" Pt. 2, the Guardians of the Galaxy are among the superheroes that help the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. and the Avengers fight the forces of the Supreme Intelligence.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in their self-titled episode of Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers.
• A Guardians of the Galaxy animated series based on the 2014 film was released in September 2015. It follows the Guardians locating the Cosmic Seed, an ancient Celestiel Artifact capable of birthing a new universe, destroying a universe, accelerating evolution and life and biological restoration.^[58]

Film

The Guardians of the Galaxy from the 2014 film (L-R: Saldana as Gamora, Pratt as Quill, Rocket Raccoon (voiced by Cooper), Bautista as Drax, and Groot (voiced by Diesel)).

• A live-action film based on the comic book and team, Guardians of the Galaxy, was released on August 1, 2014.^[59] It was directed by James Gunn,^[60] and stars Chris Pratt as Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket Raccoon, and Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot.^[61] The film also features Josh Brolin as Thanos.^[62]
• A sequel, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,^[63] has been announced with a release date of May 5, 2017.^[64]
• The team will appear in the upcoming films Avengers: Infinity War and its untitled sequel.^[65][66][67]

Video games

• Rocket Raccoon appears in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as a playable character. Star-Lord is mentioned by Nova and Groot is mentioned by Rocket Raccoon.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in the MMORPG, Marvel Heroes. Rocket Raccoon and Star-Lord both appear as playable, while Drax and Gamora appear as Team-Up support heroes and Groot appears both as a standalone Team-Up support hero and as a temporary summon support hero for Rocket Raccoon.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in Lego Marvel Super Heroes. The team consists of Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, and Star-Lord. They are seen in a mid-credits scene where they arrive on Earth looking for something at the same time when Nick Fury was overseeing the reconstruction of the Statue of Liberty. The game's Guardians of the Galaxy achievement also considers Ronan the Accuser and Nova as members of the team.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy appear in Marvel: Avengers Alliance. Rocket Racoon was the hero reward for achieving the top tier in a previous past season of PvP play. Gamora is available for recruitment as a Tactician class hero. Drax the Destroyer was the hero the reward for achieving the top tier in the most recent season of PvP play. Groot is available for recruitment as a Bruiser class hero. Star-Lord (an Infiltrator class hero) is available for recruitment by completing Special Operations 20.
• Star-Lord, Drax, Gamora, Rocket, Groot appear as playable characters in Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes. The game also features a Guardians of the Galaxy playset set in Knowhere in which the Guardians must prevent Ronan the Accuser from taking the Infinity Stone. Ronan the Accuser and Yondu are also appear as playable characters in the playset.

Toys

• A Guardians of the Galaxy three pack for the Marvel Universe 3 3/4" toyline includes a Rocket Raccoon, Star-Lord, Drax, and a miniature Groot. The three will be rereleased individually as part of the Avengers Infinite toyline.^[68]
• A Drax figure and a Rocket Raccoon Build-A-Figure have been released in their Guardian uniforms as part of the Marvel Legends line.
• Film versions of the team were released as part of the Marvel Minimates toyline in Fall 2014.^[69]
• Hot Toys released the film versions of Guardians of the Galaxy 12" figures starting in January 2015 with Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, and will follow up with Rocket Racoon, Groot, Gamora, and Drax in Q1/Q2 2015.

Theme parks

• At the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel announced that a new theme park ride, titled Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT!, will be coming to Disney California Adventure Park in 2017. It will replace the The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror ride.^[70]

References

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Guardians of the Galaxy (2008 team)

• Guardians of the Galaxy (Earth-616) at the Comic Book DB
• 'Guardians of the Galaxy (2008) at the Grand Comics Database
• 'Guardians of the Galaxy (2008) at the Comic Book DB
• Guardians of the Galaxy at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on September 1, 2016.